VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE (2021)

Studio:     Columbia Pictures
Director:    Andy Serkis
Writer:     Kelly Marcel, Tom Hardy
Producer:  Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal, Kelly Marcel, Tom Hardy, Hutch Parker
Stars:     Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris, Reid Scott, Stephen Graham, Peggy Lu, Woody Harrelson

Review Score:

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Summary:

While still struggling to coexist with the Venom symbiote, Eddie Brock encounters chaos once again when serial killer Cletus Kasady bonds with a symbiote of his own.

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Synopsis:     Show/Hide Spoilers

At California’s St. Estes Reform School in 1996, Cletus Kasady becomes irate upon learning that his girlfriend Frances Barrison, whose ability to emit a supersonic scream later turns her into the villain Shriek, is being sent away for psychiatric treatment because her power has grown too strong. Frances uses her scream to try escaping custody. Although deafened in one ear by the sound, police officer P. Mulligan manages to shoot Frances in her left eye. Mulligan believes he killed Frances, but she is actually committed to Ravencroft under the supervision of cruel psychiatrist Dr. Pazzo.

Now a detective in the present day, Mulligan summons disgraced reporter Eddie Brock to San Quentin because serial killer Cletus Kasady will only speak to Eddie and the authorities need to know where Kasady hid the bodies of his victims. Kasady promises to reveal his secrets to Eddie in exchange for Eddie releasing the message, “That distant cathedral is all I see, fractured angel the other part of me.” Eddie later publishes that headline and Frances reads it while still imprisoned at Ravencroft.

On their way out of the prison, the Venom symbiote, which remains bonded with Eddie and continues causing repeated confrontations between the two of them, notes a drawing on Kasady’s cell wall. Once back at Eddie’s apartment, Venom uses his abilities to connect that clue to Rodeo Beach, where law enforcement subsequently finds the missing bodies.

Due to the discovery, Eddie becomes famous while Mulligan’s longtime investigation appears inept. Kasady blames Eddie when the evidence renews public outrage demanding Kasady’s execution.

Eddie continues discouraging Venom’s desire to patrol the city for criminals to eat. As a substitute for the nutrient Venom gets from brains, Eddie tries to obtain his regular supply of chocolate from convenience storeowner Mrs. Chen, but learns the shipment didn’t arrive.

Tired of Eddie forbidding them from using his abilities, Venom attacks a mugger in an alley. Eddie has to talk Venom out of eating the man by convincing him to eat live chickens instead.

Eddie learns his ex-fiancée Anne Weying is now engaged to Dr. Dan Lewis. Venom vows to help Eddie through his heartbreak.

Kasady tauntingly invites Eddie to his execution with a postcard. Kasady’s cryptic message also refers to a “bright light” he found after being sent to St. Estes following the murders of his abusive mother and grandmother.

Eddie revisits Kasady in prison. Kasady’s insults cause the Venom symbiote to reactively attack him. Kasady bites Eddie and swallows his odd-tasting blood before Eddie can get Venom back under control.

Eddie and Venom have another argument back at Eddie’s apartment that leads into a violent fight between the two of them. Venom angrily decides to leave Eddie, and uses a series of hosts to begin making his way across San Francisco.

During his execution, the lethal injection reacts with Kasady’s symbiote-bonded blood, which causes him to transform into Carnage. Carnage rampages throughout the prison and escapes.

Mulligan grows further suspicious that Eddie is hiding information when he questions him about Kasady’s escape. Eddie reviews collected clues and recalls Kasady mentioning St. Estes.

The Carnage symbiote promises to make Kasady indestructible if he helps kill the symbiote he came from. In return for hunting Venom, Carnage agrees to help Kasady find Frances.

Venom goes clubbing at a Little Simz concert. Venom enjoys the welcoming adulation he receives for what everyone assumes is an incredible costume.

On the former grounds of St. Estes, Eddie finds a tree carved with the initial CK+FB. Eddie calls Mulligan about the clue. Mulligan identifies FB as Frances Barrison, but claims she died.

Kasady and Carnage kill Dr. Pazzo and break Frances out of Ravencroft. Cop cars swarm the couple’s getaway vehicle. Carnage tears through the police while Frances assists with her shriek, which upsets Carnage due to his sensitivity to sound. Meanwhile, Venom makes his way to Mrs. Chen as he struggles to stay bonded to a host body.

Because Eddie has been connected to unusual events involving monsters since the Life Foundation incident, Mulligan brings him in for questioning about the second breakout. Eddie admits nothing and instead uses his phone call to summon Anne. Eddie tells Anne what happened and asks her to bring Venom back so they can stop Carnage together.

Anne and Dan discover Venom bonded with Mrs. Chen. Anne sweet-talks Venom into going to see Eddie with her.

Kasady, Carnage, and Frances burn down St. Estes. They then plot to take revenge against Eddie, Venom, and Mulligan.

With the symbiote temporarily bonded to her, Anne brings Venom to the police station. Venom breaks Eddie out, but demands an apology before rejoining him. Venom and Eddie reconcile.

Mulligan searches for Eddie at his apartment. Carnage captures him.

After learning about her broken engagement with Eddie, Frances kidnaps Anne. Frances then blackmails Dan into bringing Eddie to her if he wants to save his fiancée. Dan calls Eddie to tell him that Kasady and Frances are getting married at Grace Cathedral, where Mulligan and Anne are both being held captive.

Venom interrupts the wedding, but becomes suddenly fearful when he sees they are up against a deadlier red symbiote. Eddie promises Venom can eat Kasady if he fights to save Anne. Venom agrees and a big battle ensues.

Carnage and Frances argue about how to handle Mulligan. Mulligan flees to the roof while Carnage eats a priest. Frances catches up to Mulligan, overpowers him, and begins gouging into his left eye.

Dan interrupts by arriving to douse the cathedral in gasoline. Carnage nearly kills Dan, but Venom comes to his rescue.

The church’s ringing bell forces the symbiotes to intermittently recede into their host bodies. Eddie and Kasady continue fighting during these moments anyway.

Carnage threatens to kill Anne. Frances warns that Anne’s murder would be going too far. Carnage attacks Frances, which angers Kasady. Eddie points out how he and Venom are better suited for each other than Carnage and Kasady are, which rallies Venom to overcome his fear of the superior symbiote.

Venom and Carnage battle atop the cathedral’s spire. Carnage swipes at Frances during the conflict. Frances uses her scream to destroy the spire, causing everyone to fall. The noise forces the symbiotes to separate from their hosts, but it also brings the church bell crashing down on top of Frances.

Venom re-bonds with Eddie to save him from the impact. Kasady painfully hits the ground. Venom captures and consumes the Carnage symbiote before it can slither back to Kasady’s body.

Kasady tries to tell Eddie he only wanted his friendship. Venom says, “F*ck this guy” and bites off Kasady’s head. Eddie, Venom, Anne, and Dan escape the burning cathedral and go their separate ways. Mulligan’s eyes are seen glowing blue.

Eddie and Venom vacation on a tropical island to avoid the authorities. Eddie finally relents and agrees to become a “Lethal Protector” with Venom.

While watching a telenovela back at Eddie’s apartment, reality suddenly shifts. Eddie and Venom are inexplicably transported to a resort hotel room. A TV broadcast shows J. Jonah Jameson revealing that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. Venom licks the screen. As Eddie and Venom wonder where they are and what happened, a confused man emerges from the bathroom to ask why Eddie is in his room.

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Review:

Comic book movies can’t win. Well, they win at the box office, and whenever someone awards gold statuettes for special effects. With critics and contrarians however, cinematic superhero stories are forced to kick footballs at goalposts that refuse to stand still in the same place.

“This movie is too dumb and silly.” “That movie is too dark and serious.” “A medieval princess possessed by a sentient space slug into building a crystal bridge to an alternate galaxy populated with anthropomorphic animals would never say something like that.” Pick a lane already. While you’re at it, think back to when you were young, and remember where this source material comes from.

No film can ever please all audiences. But chronic complainers indulge their supposed intellectual superiority by predetermining which imaginary offense will apply to any given comic book flick. Then they use that manufactured animosity to decry a quality decline that doesn’t actually exist, all because they can’t stand to see another dollar go to Disney in support of mass market entertainment they claim is killing “true” cinema. As if movies haven’t been loaded with fanged creatures from gothic fantasy, disfigured monsters, and swashbuckling heroes exploring weird worlds since the day George Melies fired a fat rocket into the moon’s creamy eye.

According to its rap sheet of negative reviews and reactions, “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” commits the crime of treating Eddie Brock and his alien symbiote like Felix and Oscar, or Ross and Rachel, trading epic action for odd couple comedy. Okay, I agree that if bickering banter and the humorous exploration of a push-pull relationship aren’t what one wants or expects from a sequel to a horror-heavy thriller, I can see why the movie might be a lark that’s a letdown. But taken in the spirit its makers intended, “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” turns into a real ripper exploding with cool creatures causing chaos, hilarious laughs, and a Hallmark holiday movie’s worth of heart that’s unexpectedly charming.

And what Tom Hardy, writer Kelly Marcel, and director Andy Serkis intended was to re-imagine an appealingly cheesy 1940s or 1950s monster movie with modern frills and a big budget. Think about it for a minute. The kneejerk reaction to a scene such as Frances Barrison, an imprisoned psychopath who once had a romance with serial killer Cletus Kasady, soaking in a front page article about her Death Row beau would be to wonder, “Hold on, what warden allowed this superpowered villain to read a newspaper featuring her dangerous former lover?” Really though, that’s no more implausible of a beat than some military man mobilizing tanks against a massive radioactive spider, much less the Wolf Man leaping on top of Frankenstein’s Monster.

“Venom: Let There Be Carnage” keeps these old school conceits coming. Shots dissolve into tabloid headlines that deliver information. A news reporter dumps out more exposition via voiceover. Remember arrows animated over a map in movies like “Casablanca?” Films regularly deployed sketchy storytelling shortcuts back in the black-and-white era. I’d bet dollars to donuts Serkis intentionally emulates that style as a cheeky homage to B-movie history. Touchstones reach back into Saturday matinee memories while priming your mind to give in to the gaudiness of energetic antics, just like any awestruck kid whose eyes become Gorilla-glued to wild sights on a big screen would.

“Venom: Let There Be Carnage’s” kookiness doesn’t feel as cheap as it did during those drive-in days because of how engaged its actors are. As a down-on-his-luck mope constantly at odds with an entity hijacking his body, Tom Hardy essentially acts against post-production ADR and CGI the entire time, and he does an outstanding job of making it look like someone else was actually on set alongside him. Michelle Williams carries her character no differently than she would in an Oscar bait effort, yet still sneaks in sly moments like one where she turns on radiant eyes to seduce Venom. Then you also have the ever-reliable Stephen Graham spackling some spaces as a dogged detective determined to get to the bottom of the monster mayhem tearing up California.

Things don’t run as smoothly on the bad guy end. As Frances/Shriek, Naomie Harris comes across like an afterthought inclusion. The script winkingly calls out a different person as “what did we even need him for?” dead weight, except it’s Frances who practically poses a problem since she’s mostly used to pivot plot progression, even when it requires her to suddenly switch allegiances for weird reasons. As main villain Cletus/Carnage, Woody Harrelson doesn’t receive as much time to shine as he should. But it’s still Woody doing Woody things, and that’s always enjoyable even in micro-doses.

Domesticated chickens named Sonny and Cher. Venom draped in glow-stick ropes while living it up at a candy-colored rap concert. I get how some viewers can’t get past the goofiness. I thought about toning down my rating to reflect how deeply divided opinions would be overall. But you know what? I had a fun time, so my score is going in green. With great situational one-liners that play into specific scenes instead of sounding like “written” jokes, “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” is a hell of a lot funnier (deliberately so) than many straight-up comedies that came out in the same year. Anyone is of course free to disagree with my favorability. But if they want to get dismissively angry about it, I had better not hear boo from them whenever I turn my thumb down at a movie they liked ever again.

Review Score: 75

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